The Shadows

21| Departure

He takes a deep breath. He keeps his face in front of mine, running his fingers through my hair, placing his other hand on my cheek, running it back and forth with his thumb.

I start to come back into my body as my senses revive. Half asleep, I keep my eyes closed. Thoughts flood my mind, the memory of Mikayla telling me what happened makes me internally panic. The realization of Damien's presence calms my nerves. I can feel his touch, how close he is, his stare.

"Damien..." I whisper as my face contorts, allowing a tear to slide down my cheek. He wipes it away with his thumb.

"Hey beautiful." He whispers. I stop breathing and my heart constricts. He's never called me that before. I open my eyes to see him looking down at me with nothing but concern. We stare into each others eyes for a few brief moments. I roll over onto my stomach and drag in my knees slowly, facing him. His elbows on either side of my knees. I look at him as tears begin to fill my eyes, escaping and rolling down my cheeks. He says nothing but pulls me a bit closer to him.

My voice shaky and a whisper, "I-I..." He tilts his head and wipes off a tear from my cheek. "You don't need to say anything." More tears roll down. "M-my parents..." I choke on my words. "I know baby." He says calmly, his eyes never leaving mine. I throw my arms around his neck and bury my head into his shoulder. He immediately responds by standing, wrapping his arms around me and lifting me. He shifts himself onto the bed, leaning against the bed frame; he places me on his lap, hugging me. He listens to me cry for hours, until I cry myself into exhaustion on his chest. He rubs my back lightly as he leans his head on mine.

Another hour goes by, Damien still holding me in his embrace on the bed. I sleep soundly, lightly breathing. He strokes my arm, patiently waiting for me to wake up.

The door knob twists and opens. Damien lifts his head, looking towards the door. Cain emerges, poking his head in. "Damien." He whispers. "What?" He mouths to Cain. Cain waves his hand to him, signalling him to come into the hallway. Damien looks down to me, debating whether he should leave or not. I was so perfectly curled up on his chest and he didn't want to disturb me. He sighs before gently scooping me up, shifting from underneath me and placing me back down onto the bed. He gets up slowly and tip toes to the door.

They both walk into the hallway, Cain closing the door quietly behind Damien.

"Hey..." Damien starts. "How is she doing?" Worry in Cain's voice. Damien shakes his head. "Not good..." Cain rubs the back of his neck. "I told everyone the situation and to give her some space." Damien nods sadly in agreement. "I don't want people reminding her at every turn of this house that her parents are dead." Cain's expression twists, "I know." Cain sighs, before changing the subject. "We need to discuss the details of your trip." Damien furrows his brows. "Are you serious? I'm not going anywhere until she is ready." Cain runs his hand down his face. "Damien, no one in the war cares. Many people have lost their families." Damien scowls at him. "I'm not leaving without her and I'm not leaving if she's not ready, that is final." Cain sighs. "Fine, but you still need to know what to do." Damien rolls his eyes at him. "Tell me what you want then." Damien urges him to hurry up. "I need you to visit the four neutral zones and meet with the head of the zone. Send them here. I need you to convince them to shift the neutral status to rebel status." Cain looks at Damien intently. "Sounds easy enough." Damien shrugs. Cain lifts an eyebrow and gives him a smirk. "You're forgetting one minor detail, or two I should say." Damien tilts his head, furrowing his brows, thinking of what it could possibly be. "What would that be?" He asks.

"Ember and Skye." Cain states flatly.

Damien smacks his palm onto his face. "Shit"

"Good luck little bro, let me know when you're ready and I will have everything prepared for you." Cain pats Damien's back lightly before walking away.